Englander to Leave L.A. City Council to Join Entertainment Firm

Los Angeles City Councilman Mitch Englander will step down at the end of the year to join live sports and entertainment company Oak View Group as executive vice president of government affairs, Englander announced Thursday.

Englander represents Council District 12, which includes Northridge, Chatsworth, Granada Hills, Porter Ranch and West Hills. He is currently in the middle of his second term, which had been set to end in 2020.

The only Republican on the council, Englander was elected in 2011 and became president pro tempore in 2013. He also serves on the council’s budget and finance committee as well as its planning and land use committee.

Los Angeles-based Oak View provides a variety of services for venues and arenas including design, construction, branding, security, ticketing, operations and marketing. The company is led by Tim Leiweke, the former chief executive at Anschutz Entertainment Group, who joined Oak View in 2015. The firm is a subsidiary of music and entrainment mogul Irving Azoff’s Azoff Co.

“If I ever dreamed of fulfillment beyond what being a Councilmember has brought me, it would be to make a significant difference in even more lives and communities,” said Englander in a statement. “Tim Leiweke, Irving Azoff, Francesca Bodie, and their entire team have presented me with a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to do just that -- to join a force that has become a positive disruption to business as usual in the sports and live entertainment industry.”